Egba people

The Egba people are a subgroup of the Yoruba people, an ethnic group of western Nigeria, a majority of whom are from the central part of Ogun State that is Ogun Central Senatorial District. Ogun Central Senatorial District comprises six local government areas in Ogun State: Abeokuta North, Abeokuta South, Ewekoro, Ifo, Obafemi Owode and Odeda local governments. Etymology The origination of the word Egba is disputed. The first meaning may come from the word Ẹ̀gbálugbó, meaning wanderers towards the forest, and this comes from the fact that the ancestors of the Egba people came from the region of the Oyo Empire to the "Egba Forest" and formed what we now know as the city of Abeokuta. The "Egbalugbo" were in conjunction with the Ẹ̀gbáluwẹ or Ẹ̀gbálodó, meaning the wanderers towards the river, who later shortened their name to "Egbado," another subethnic group of the Yoruba. Another possible meaning may come from the word Ẹsẹ̀gbá, the title of a chief which led several groups of the Egba to their present location. History The Egba group, originally under the Oyo Empire, became independent following the spectacular collapse of Oyo in the first half of the 19th century. Wars with the Dahomey, in which the Egba were successful partly due to the protection afforded by the Olumo Rock, led to the founding of the city of Abeokuta, which literally means "under the rock".